A word of advice to mamas separating....

[Hollycrand]

make sure you get copies of your birth certificate, marriage certificate and important documents before the separation occurs.

I left an emotionally abusive situation and so moved out. At the time I was not thinking about important documents, I was thinking about survival. I got passports and ID documents and such, but not my birth certificate or marriage certificate

Of course, now my stbxh is using this as leverage to manipulate me even further. I am pulling my hair out. I will most likely have to get a court order for these documents, which will take a while.
This is all so I can just file for divorce.

[eclipse]

Can you not order your own copies from the clerk's office? I can walk into my county clerk's office, pay a fee, and walk out with certified copies of both my marriage licence and my kids' birth certificates. Even if we no longer lived nearby, I'd be able to order them online. Is it not so easy in Canada?

[*MamaJen*]

Always good advice to take important documents with you, but unless Canada is different, it really shouldn't be that hard to get a copy of the birth/marriage license -- certainly not court order territory, I shouldn't think. It took me $15 and 10 minutes at the county clerk's office to get DS's birth certificate. Have you called whichever local office handles public records and asked how you can get copies?
By the way, sorry he's still trying to control and manipulate you, but yay for getting out of a situation like that.
Okay, here you go, here's instructions on how to get the birth certificate: http://www.ehow.com/how_4453133_get-...cate-from.html
And montreal-specific: http://www.ehow.com/how_2365346_get-...cate-from.html

[Halfasianmomma]

I'm not 100% certain, but I believe the OP's country of birth (as well as the country where she married) is in Europe, making obtaining a new birth certificate a real pain in the butt.

I totally sympathize mama. Your STBX is being such a moron. I somewhat understand fighting for more time with one's child but witholding documents? What a waste of time and energy.

[Ceinwen]

Oh yargh. What a pain. That's something I never would have thought of. If my ex had wanted the cards, he could have grabbed them.

Thankfully I've got their SIN cards, BC, health cards, baptismal records, etc. I'm also applying for their passports (with my ex's permission) and I'm putting everything (along with divorce papers, life insurance and mortgage) in a safe deposit box.

[Hollycrand]

I live in Canada, was born in California, and got married in France. So I can't just walk into the county office.
I wish it were that easy.....

[Plaid Leopard]

saw this in new posts.
Here's info for gettings copies of French marriage certificates. Looks like you can make a request on-line.
You can request a certified copy of your BC by mail.
I hope stbx gets a clue and that everything works out ok.

[Goodmom2008]

Originally Posted by Hollycrand

make sure you get copies of your birth certificate, marriage certificate and important documents before the separation occurs.

I left an emotionally abusive situation and so moved out. At the time I was not thinking about important documents, I was thinking about survival. I got passports and ID documents and such, but not my birth certificate or marriage certificate

Of course, now my stbxh is using this as leverage to manipulate me even further. I am pulling my hair out. I will most likely have to get a court order for these documents, which will take a while.
This is all so I can just file for divorce.

So he's holding the documents hostage. Go around him. You know where you were born, find out how to request a new birth certificate. You know where you got your marriage license, go to the county clerk's office and request a new one. It took me all of 5 minutes to get a new marriage certificate. Granted, getting married in France is going to make it more complicated. But you can still get the information. It just may take time.

Also, I didn't need to provide my birth certificate or my marriage certificate when I filed for divorce. Are you sure you need to?